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The Waves

Mentawai surf map

The Mentawai chain runs roughly 100 kilometres off the Sumatran coast, north to south, with more world-class reefs packed into it than anywhere else on earth. Here is how it fits together, and every break we surf in each part of it.

Schematic map of the Mentawai Islands and surrounding surf regions The Sumatran mainland runs down the right side with Padang and Krui marked. Offshore to the west, north to south: the Hinako Islands off Nias, the Tello Islands, North Mentawai (the Playgrounds), Central Mentawai (Sipora) and South Mentawai (the Pagais). SUMATRA PADANG KRUI OVERNIGHT CROSSING Hinako Islands off Nias 2 BREAKS Tello Islands CHARTER ROUTE North Mentawai the Playgrounds 7 BREAKS Central Mentawai Sipora 10 BREAKS South Mentawai the Pagais 3 BREAKS 4 BREAKS N
SCHEMATIC. POSITIONS ARE INDICATIVE, NOT NAVIGATIONAL.

How the chain works

Almost every trip starts in Padang on the Sumatran mainland. From there it is an overnight crossing to the islands, which is why our charters leave in the evening and have you anchored in the lineup by first light.

The islands run north to south. The north holds the Playgrounds, a tight cluster that includes some of the heaviest reefs in the region. The centre, around Sipora, has the most famous names and is where our Sunset Surf Villas sit. The south, the Pagais, is more remote and rewards the trip with long, mechanical waves.

Further north again, well beyond the Mentawai, the Tello Islands and the Hinakos off Nias are reachable on the right forecast. And on the mainland far to the south, Krui in South Sumatra is a coast of its own, where Jenny's Bamboo Surfcamp sits with waves out front.

Every break, by region

North Mentawai 7

  • Rifles ADV A machine-like right that runs for hundreds of metres and is widely rated one of the best on earth.
  • Kandui ADV A hollow, mechanical left in the northern Playgrounds, often called the Mentawai answer to Teahupoo in miniature.
  • Bank Vaults ADV A thick right-hander over a fast-rising reef in the Playgrounds, one of the heaviest barrels in the Mentawai and strictly for advanced surfers.
  • E-Bay ADV A fickle, world-class left in the Playgrounds that barrels from start to finish when the swell has enough west in it.
  • Burgerworld INT A long, playful right-hand reef point in the Playgrounds that switches on when the heavier North Mentawai reefs go flat.
  • Nipussi INT A consistent right-hand reef in the Playgrounds that stays clean on north winds and needs less swell than its heavier neighbours.
  • Hideaways INT/ADV A world-class Playgrounds left that opens with a hollow ledge and runs into a long rippable wall, over reef that punishes greed.

Central Mentawai 10

  • Lance's Right ADV A perfect, photogenic right-hand barrel and probably the most photographed wave in Indonesia.
  • Telescopes INT/ADV A long, versatile left off Sipora that works across a huge range of sizes, and a favourite of ours.
  • Tikus ALL LEVELS The uncrowded wave that breaks straight out front at Sunset Surf Villas, checkable from the deck.
  • Lance's Left INT/ADV A long, consistent left that wraps down the reef at Katiet in three sections, from a shallow barrel up top to rippable walls on the inside.
  • Icelands INT/ADV A left-hand reef off north-west Sipora that swings from a mellow head-high wall to one of the heaviest big-wave barrels in the Mentawai.
  • Scarecrows INT/ADV A long, underrated left off North Sipora that runs over 200 yards into the Curry Bowl, one of the central Mentawai's most consistent waves.
  • Suicides EXPERT A fickle, fast barrelling left off north-west Sipora that stays empty because most crews take one look at it and keep going.
  • Ombak Tidur INT/ADV A sectiony right-hand reef off North Sipora that picks up swell on the smaller days and rarely carries a crowd.
  • Doughnuts EXPERT A fickle, expert-only left off North Sipora that barrels hard over shallow coral on the rare days it switches on.
  • Bintangs INT/ADV A short, dredging right across the channel from Lance's Left that turns on when the north wind ruins everything else in the bay.

South Mentawai 3

  • Macaronis INT/ADV The most famous left in the Mentawais, a machine-like wall widely called the best fun wave on earth.
  • Greenbush EXPERT One of Indonesia's heaviest, roundest left barrels, breaking over shallow coral in the southern Mentawai and only on a big high tide.
  • Thunders ADV A heavy, shifting left off the Pagais that keeps breaking when most of the chain has gone flat or too big.

Hinako Islands, Nias 2

  • Asu INT/ADV A 200 metre coral reef left in the Hinako Islands off Nias, fast and barrelling on a southwest swell and still rarely crowded.
  • Bawa EXPERT A thick, shallow right-hander in the Hinako Islands off Nias, Bawa is one of Sumatra's heaviest waves and strictly for experienced surfers.

Krui, South Sumatra 4

  • Way Jambu EXPERT The Sumatran Pipeline: a heavy, shallow left on the Krui coast that throws thick barrels from the take-off and punishes mistakes.
  • Ujung Bocur INT/ADV One of Sumatra's longest lefts: a 200 metre reef point at Tanjung Setia that barrels at the top, walls down the line and rarely goes flat.
  • Jenny's Right INT/ADV A quiet right-hand reef break north of Krui that comes alive on wet season north-westerlies, when the rest of this coast has gone onshore.
  • Mandiri Beach INT/ADV A long run of black sand south of Krui that catches every south swell, throwing thick shifting barrels for anyone willing to walk and start early.

Want the written version? Read our guide to the Mentawai surf spots, browse every break in detail, or see how they fit into a trip on our surf charters and surf camps.